Are U.S.-Pakistan Ties Even Worse Than We Thought?

The release of new WikiLeaks cables, this round pertaining to Pakistan, have shed harsh new light on the troubled U.S.-Pakistan relationship, which has been disintegrating this year.
They reveal a failed U.S. effort to remove some of Pakistan's
weapons-grade uranium, difficult struggles between the country's
military and political leadership, and more. Here's what people are
saying about the cables.

U.S. Tried, Failed to Remove Pakistani Uranium The Washington Post summarizes,
"A cable from 2009 describes failed efforts by U.S. officials to remove
highly enriched uranium from Pakistan because of the poor perception of
the United States in the country." Officials on both sides worried that
removing the uranium would deeply exacerbate Pakistani
anti-Americanism. "

Tension Runs Deep in U.S.-Pakistan Relations The New York Times' Jane Perlez, David Sanger, and Eric Schmitt
call the nuclear issue "the most unnerving evidence of the complex
relationship — sometimes cooperative, often confrontational, always wary
— between America and Pakistan nearly 10 years into the American-led
war in Afghanistan. The cables ... make it clear that underneath public
reassurances lie deep clashes over strategic goals on issues like
Pakistan’s support for the Afghan Taliban and tolerance of Al Qaeda, and
Washington’s warmer relations with India, Pakistan’s archenemy. ... The
cables portray deep skepticism that Pakistan will ever cooperate fully
in fighting the full panoply of extremist groups."

Pakistani Military Considered Coup in 2009 The Guardian's Declan Walsh writes,
"Pakistan's army chief, General Ashfaq Kayani, considered pushing
President Asif Ali Zardari from office and forcing him into exile to
resolve a political dispute, the US embassy cables reveal. Kayani aired
the idea during a frantic round of meetings with the US ambassador Anne
Patterson in March 2009 as opposition leader Nawaz Sharif rallied
thousands of supporters in a street movement that threatened to topple
the government. Kayani said that while he disliked Zardari, he
distrusted Sharif even more, and appeared to be angling for a solution
that would prevent the opposition leader from coming to power."

Military Leader's Shadowy Influence The U.K. Spectator's Peter Hoskin writes,
"While they don't tell us too much that is surprising – being mostly
about the duplicitous game that country is playing with the West – they
do highlight some potentially worrying trends. Chief among them is the
growing influence of General Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani, the head of
Pakistan's army. His name is littered generously throughout the US
briefings, and it is often connected with dangerous conspiracy and
double-dealing."

Pakistan Executing Suspects Without Trial Foreign Policy's Katherine Tiedemannsummarizes,
"Main motive for Pakistani army extrajudicial killings is revenge for
terrorist attacks on security targets. And the Pakistani military lets
it happen because of a 'lack of viable prosecution and punishment
options' available." The New York Times has details and a horrifying video.

News reports are focusing on the Germanwings pilot's possible depression, following a familiar script in the wake of mass killings. But the evidence shows violence is extremely rare among the mentally ill.